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Talak Archman
Human male, born LY 831, in Monab. Arch-bishop of The Order (881-?) Talak (pronounced tă·lăk) was always a particularly religious person, even as a boy. He came from a family that didn't include any spirit-talkers, who were among secular citizenry of Monab, though they were also regular church-goers, who were proud to live in the village which served as the center of religion on The Land. And so his parents were especially proud when their son turned out to be a spirit-talker, himself. He became a leader in their local church by the time he was 20; by 25, he was a vice-bishop. Four years later, in 860, the bishop of Monab died, and was replaced by a man named Pyotr. That same year, Kizin became a vice-bishop. By the time Pyotr turned 70, in 880, he was in ill health, and his doctors didn't give him long to live. It was generally assumed that Talak would become the next bishop of Monab. However, Pyotr unexpectedly lived another five years, finally dying in 885. Just as unexpectedly, in 881, Arch-bishop Esmeralda died, leaving the position vacant. Though she had been the same age as Pyotr, she had been in considerably better health. Certainly, Pyotr was in no condition to assume the position of Arch-bishop, and no bishop of any other village was of a mind to abandon their own positions at that time. So, at age 50, the job fell to Talak. (Four years later, upon Pyotr's death, Kizin would become bishop of Monab.) In 890, Kizin conceived The Plan, which was a way of bringing order to the secular aspects of Landian society, just as the Order had brought organization to religion in 404. He worked in secret to refine his Plan, with some help from a few others, including Bishop Dalin of First Village. In 891, they felt the Plan was ready to be presented to Arch-bishop Talak, who quickly became very excited about it. The Plan ultimately was expected to result in a united world government (the Second Order) after a period of seven years. Therefore, Talak suggested they begin to implement the Plan in 897, so that it would be completed in 903, and the new government would be established in 904. Talak believed this would be a fitting date, as it was the 500th anniversary of the founding of the Order. It's not known precisely how much Talak personally did to help implement the Plan, though he is considered one of the most important figures in the Coming of the Order, at the very least for the influence he had on other members of the Order from various villages, who perhaps took a more active role in the Plan's implementation. In 904, when the surname law was passed, Talak chose the name Archman. There are conflicting stories as to whether this is simply because he was the presiding Arch-bishop at the time, or else in honor of Archibald, the first bishop of Monab, who many historians claim would have been a more suitable choice for the first Arch-bishop than was Malcolm. There is a common story, generally considered apocryphal, that Archibald turned down the position because he felt it would be silly for the Arch-bishop to have "Arch" in his own name. After Talak chose his surname, five centuries later, a popular joke arose that he clearly didn't feel the same way. See also *List of Arch-bishops Category:People